July 28, 2016

Ok these girls are actually the cutest humans ever. I have babysat them but they are growing up and becoming such fun and rad ladies. We spent the other day hanging at river and then went for ice cream after at Yellow Belly! Our goal was to capture some fun, summery images for parents and my portfolio.

SHOOTING AT NOON

I love the warmth and light in these images. Okay, so it wasn't high noon, but it was still a lot earlier than I usually shoot. What I want to tell you that it doesn't have to be sunrise or sunset to capture beautiful light! It was 2:30 in the afternoon and SO sunny! I still shot backlight but found much more shade. I loved this time of day because the light in my girls' eyes was so bright and brought out their beautiful blue eyes! When the girls were in the water, I shot tight with the 70-200mm f/2.8 because the water reflected so much glare.

It only takes a hot day and a little joke for the ice cream to slide off ;) Can you see it in the bottom right corner (right)?

July 24, 2016

The most pure liquid form on Earth. Life could not survive without it. We all need it to function, to grow, to adapt, to live. The Rule of Three states you can go without shelter for 3 months, without food for 3 weeks... but we could only survive without water for 3 days. Out of the four most basic needs; water is arguably the most vital... that is behind air... (3 minutes).

It's summer, everyone loves being outside this time of year, and since it's warm, there's usually some H2O involved in the activities we partake in. Not only am I water sign, but I feel particularly attracted to water because of it's unique and invigorating qualities. This post has been inspired by the amount of water we touch this time of year by using it as a metaphor for life to be the change we wish to see in the world... hint: all it takes is YOU! You are absolutely enough.

The Ripple Effect

Think of yourself as a drop of water in an ocean of our world. It seems like one person (or one drop,) could never affect another drop on the opposite side of the globe. This is not true. It's important that we all recognize the power of our single drop. By ourselves, when we hit the larger pool of water, our ripple can die out quickly, but it contains the power to create more; and it wants to. It is when we build community and push each other that is constructive through inspiration, we drop in the ocean at the same time as this curator. Just like that, our ripple has gotten bigger. When more people join us, our ripple keeps growing, picking up new drops; and we are happy to include them. When we work together, greater ideas can become realities rather than if we tried doing it on our own. When we decide to be competitors, our ripple dies out quicker than if we were just alone. Imagine a line in the ocean so when our drops hit the water at the same time, (across the line from one another,) they cannot fully let our ripple run out and try to find the community it craves because the line of competition ends our ripples, our ideas, or what have you. These ripples are never able to meet; they immediately stop a creative flow. Therefore, these drops are never able to connect to create a bigger ripple to slowly start to encompass new people (drops), experiences, and ideas. Soon enough, when everyone starts working together, and building each other up, the world could be infinitely changed.It's imperative that we focus on who we are rather than who we are not.It's just like when you start doing exactly what you were meant to be doing, everything follows. When you drop in the right part of the sea, you are able to find the like-minded people to help you grow. This is what has started the big companies and organizations; Apple, Facebook, The United Nations. They were in the right place at the right time with the right ideas. When you find your way through life, know that you are exactly where you need to be.

So when you do something kind, they do something kind, and so forth... you spread goodness in the world. One bad deed, and everyone could suffer. Think on that, and do a random act of kindness today.

While you're swimming in lakes, splashing in the pool, or jumping on the sprinkler-soaked trampoline this summer, I invite you to be conscious of the ripples you make and what you can create.

What I'm trying to get at here is that you can make a switch to positive, more encompassing energies that will set you on a path that lets the right people in, experiences before thought never possible, and ideas that can do good. The world definitely needs more good! The best part: one good act and you're already on your way!

My favorite songs to keep your waves growing:Rising Water by James Vincent McMorrowThe River by Sam GarrettBitter Water by The Oh HellosRivers and Roads by The Head and the HeartThe Ocean by Mike Perry

July 21, 2016

This is Suzi Q! She was in town for an ice skating competition from Indiana and I'm so glad we connected and were able to shoot! Her fun, upbeat, and most of all... sweet personality brought so much inspiration to me and contributed to how I wanted to photograph her and what I wanted to show in her portraits. Suzi is strong and beautiful and her light just shines through. I absolutely love these images!

BLACKS & WHITES
Shooting at the rink on a blue bird day can be tricky, but it's definitely something that can be figured out! The ice acts as a HUGE reflector and can be hard to manage sometimes but if you keep focused on looking for the light in your subject's eyes and/or the area to highlight, it can be super powerful. I tried to use backlight for the images on the ice, but a few of my favorites were right on the line of the shade from the black curtain that hangs over the ice. That's another thing! The black curtain above and the intense reflection of white from the ice can make a complex lighting situation that is really tough to work with (the b&w portrait is a good example of such strong contrasting lights!)

YAY for challenges and working with them to make myself slow down to think about what I'm trying to accomplish! :)